In a Q&A with Construction Digital, Louis, Sustainability Analyst at Seddon, discussed how the business uses PPN 06/21, now known as PPN 006. Under this procurement policy, organisations bidding for central government contracts worth more than £5m must publish a Carbon Reduction Plan. The plan reports their emissions and commits them to net zero by a target year.

Louis described the plan as end-of-year accounts for emissions. Scope 1 and 2 cover a business’s own operations and are easier to control. Scope 3 covers the wider supply chain and typically makes up more than 90% of a business’s footprint.

Louis Saunderson, Sustainability Analyst at Seddon, said: “The biggest shift is that carbon is no longer just a compliance line in a submission.”

Procurement weightings now allow quality and sustainability to outweigh price. Seddon’s Carbon Reduction Plan has improved how the business captures and manages data, so it can evidence real reductions in fuel use, delivery consolidation and site emissions. Carbon thinking is now shared across Seddon’s operations, commercial and bid teams.

Louis said clients are paying closer attention to fuel use, which reflects efficiency and helps reduce deliveries, disruption, noise and air pollution. Scrutiny of Scope 3 emissions, particularly embodied carbon, is also growing. PPN 006 requires five Scope 3 categories, but the NHS is moving towards full disclosure across all 15.

To support its supply chain, Seddon profiles the carbon maturity of its key suppliers, provides guidance and templates, and focuses on high-impact areas such as materials, transport and plant. Louis said: “It’s about capability building rather than policing.”

On deep retrofit, Louis said the skills are already there at the top end of the industry. The main barriers are commercial and cultural, including the risks of uncertain existing buildings and the need for earlier collaboration between clients and contractors.

Louis does not expect the £5m threshold to be lowered significantly in the near future, as many SMEs would struggle with the extra cost. Seddon already treats carbon reporting as business as usual across all its business units, so the company is well prepared if the threshold does change.

Read